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Farrell and girlfriend reportedly split Colin Farrell has reportedly split from his girlfriend. feeds.breakingnews.ie |
The action and war 25: do you agree with our rankings? The list of our critics' picks of the 25 best action and war movies has been released. Tell us what we left out here, and vote for your favourite of the ones we did mention here guardian.co.uk |
Making His'story: a streetwise film shot by British boys in the hood A new short film by Bivas Ambasada, featuring the rapper Luc Skyz, refuses to glorify street violence. Ben Child meets its starsThe British film industry has always seemed to trail a little behind Hollywood when it comes to depicting life at the sharp end. They have Boyz in the Hood, while we have Kidulthood. America gets Quentin Tarantino; Britain has Nick Love.And yet for all its swagger, much of Hollywood "street" cinema undoubtedly glorifies violence rather than condemning it. Film-makers such as Andrea Arnold, whose Fish Tank spotlighted the raw existence of a teenager on a tough Essex council estate last year, create arresting cinema without resorting to shallow machismo, and a new short by British film-maker Bivas Ambasada offers a similar level of authenticity matched with a refusal to romanticise the rage of youth.His'story is, nevertheless, a very different type of beast. Made with and featuring UK rapper Luc Skyz, and backed with rousing music from the fast-becoming iconic film composer Clint Mansell, it's a poetic journey through a young man's realisation that there is no glamour in violence when it leads so inevitably towards death.On screen, Ambasada offers us a bloody, meaningless encounter and its aftermath. Meanwhile Skyz, in softly toned voiceover and sounding like Roots Manuva at his most introspective, strips away the testosterone to offer a stark verdict on street violence."These streets are just a vicious cycle of death," he says. "A disease worse than cancer, it's ruthless, always ready to stab you in the back ... Before you begin on the journey of revenge, make sure you dig two graves."Ambasada tells me: "I've had near-death situations where I had to fight for my life. A large proportion of the story is based on my personal experiences both good and bad. I wanted to really flip the script to showcase the fact that there can definitely be a positive from negative situations, and I'm living proof of that."He rejects the Ritchie/Love school of gangland cinema, but says he has some time for Noel Clarke's Kidulthood and Adulthood, describing the films as "something quite different at the time"."I don't try to glamorise the violence, because there's nothing glamorous about it," he adds. "My films are focused on the youth and educating them, the main reason would be that the emotions are real, you really feel the pain these characters are going through because my focus is on the psychological aspects of each of the characters. I don't just want to capture my audience's minds ... I want to capture their hearts."Skyz, the younger brother of novelist Zadie Smith and UK rapper and comic Doc Brown, also experienced violent situations while growing up in Kilburn and Willesden."When I was a teenager my borough had the highest level of gun crime in the capital. There were shootings every week in particular hotspots and it did have an effect on me and my peers while growing up," he says. "I know victims of violence and have been in the presence of the perpetrators and I've always been someone that didn't follow things."Brent is a funny area because there are also parts that are the complete opposite. My family were a working-class family with middle-class aspirations, and so I got the privilege of going on holidays, seeing and learning interesting things, and I'm forever grateful for that."I ask whether it has been harder for him to make his way in the music industry with a positive message. "I think it suits our society to promote a negative stereotype of rappers and a demographic of people as it helps to strengthen the status quo," he says. "My music is positive but I don't seek to make positive music all of the time, It's just a personification of my values and my deepest thoughts."In my case, no matter what I do in my career, I will always draw back to that element of social commentary, what's important to me and what angers me because hip hop is supposed to represent how you feel and there are many facets to a well-rounded man's personality. Taking rap out of the equation, I think having a message which advocates people to think and not be sheep is always going to make it harder for anyone, because we live in a system where people follow the crowd like sheep."His'story is a beguiling snapshot of life on the street, but its makers hope it might be a stepping stone to a full-length film. Before that, they hope to take Hisstory into schools and colleges as an educational package. "The workshops will include Q and As on directing, filming techniques and lyric writing with students or young offenders," says Skyz.• His'story is showing at the Wimbledon Odeon on Sunday 24 October at 1pmRapHip hopBen Childguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Harrison Ford calls on US to ratify treaty on conservation The actor warns that the cost of exclusion from a global biodiversity plan will be felt financially and in wellbeing• In pictures: New Amazon speciesThe actor Harrison Ford has called on the United States to ratify the international treaty governing conservation and urged consumers everywhere to shop more responsibly in order to limit the impact on the natural world.Ford was speaking in Nagoya on the fringes of a crucial United Nations conference to establish a global action plan to protect the natural world. But the US – the world's biggest economy and consumer – is not taking a full part in the discussions because Congress has refused to ratify the UN Convention on Biological Diversity that the former president Bill Clinton signed in 1993."It's a matter of political will," Ford told the Guardian. "I'm not sure what objections the US has to taking the necessary steps. I know it's difficult to get things through Congress these days, but what needs to be done is have the president prioritise this process of congressional advice and consent on this treaty so we can be signatories."With the Senate in blocking mode and US public opinion swinging against big international negotiations to protect the environment, this will be difficult. But Ford – a director of the US-based NGO Conservation International – says the cost of not signing will be ultimately felt in people's wallets and wellbeing because nature provides clean air, fresh water, carbon sequestration and food security."The economic benefits of biodiversity are recognised," he said. "If we can get the message across to the voting public that their interests are not being served by being outside the convention, they might make their dissatisfaction known."Ford has made a substantial fortune from starring roles in blockbusters such as Star Wars, Indiana Jones and Patriot Games, but he did accept that he was part of a "Hollywood lifestyle" that has accelerated over-consumption. "I don't do celebrity endorsements," he said. "My work with Conservation International is a good use of whatever celebrity I might have to draw attention to important problems. I have the same responsibility as everyone to reduce consumption and to teach children to respect the environment."In previous interviews, he has said his interest in the environment arose from a sense of stewardship over the land that he felt after buying a ranch in Wyoming. He has donated nearly 400 acres of the ranch to the Jackson Hole Land Trust.In Nagoya, he is advocating Conservation International's goals to expand protected areas to 25% of the world's land surface and 15% of the oceans. "I care because I'm a father and I'm seeing the world around me degraded and misused and wasted for short-term profits," he said. "I think this is among the most important of the things I'm involved in. Time is short and nature is at a tipping point."Nagoya biodiversity summit 2010ConservationBiodiversityHarrison FordJonathan Wattsguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |